Saul 'Canelo' Alvarez set to choose next opponent

Saul "Canelo" Alvarez could make a decision on his next opponent as early as this week.

Saul "Canelo" Alvarez could make a decision on his next opponent as early as this week. (Gary Friedman / Los Angeles Times)

Lance Pugmire

Saul "Canelo" Alvarez could select his next opponent as early as this week, his promoter said Monday, but it will not be former three-division world champion Miguel Cotto.

Alvarez, coming off a September unanimous-decision loss to Floyd Mayweather Jr., will choose from Alfredo Angulo, Erislandy Lara or Carlos Molina for a March 8 bout at MGM Grand in Las Vegas, Richard Schaefer of Golden Boy Promotions told The Times.

Schaefer said that based on conversations he had with Cotto and his manager, the fighter will not be ready to fight Alvarez in March.

Despite an offer of more than $10 million to fight Alvarez, Cotto is believed to be exploring another bout, likely against middleweight world champion Sergio Martinez.

"We hope that the fight with Cotto will be happening later in," 2014, Schaefer said.

Schaefer said that if Alvarez opts for the most fan-friendly option of Mexico's Angulo (22-3, 18 knockouts), he'll likely pursue matching up Lara and Molina as the card's co-main event.

"Canelo-Angulo's a hell of a fight," Schaefer said.

Molina (22-6, 5 KOs) is the International Boxing Federation's 154-pound champion from Chicago who claimed the belt by beating Ishe Smith on the Mayweather-Alvarez undercard Sept. 14.